Digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB) provides an audio service and a video service to a plurality of channels. Using DMB, multimedia information and/or data may be received by user with a DMB receiver while the user is moving. Two types of DMB are a terrestrial DMB (TDMB) and a satellite DMB. The terrestrial DMB and the satellite DMB use different channel management methods, respectively. Described below is a method for channel management in a terrestrial DMB.
To manage channels, separated frequency blocks are allocated to various broadcasting providers. Each of the broadcasting providers, in turn, divides the allocated frequency block and allocates a plurality of video channels, audio channels, and/or data channels to the subdivided frequency block. As such, one frequency block is divided to allocate several channels. The channels associated with one frequency block are referred to as an ensemble.
Ensemble information for all frequency blocks is analyzed at the time of an initial driving of the TDMB receiver. Then, configuration information contained in the ensemble information for viewable channels is obtained. The configuration information is then managed as channel information by, for example, a service center or a salesman at the time of an initial purchase of the terrestrial DMB. The configuration information for all channels is stored in table form or in database form, such that necessary channel selection information is continuously provided to the user.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a channel list for setting a terrestrial DMB channel.
Referring to FIG. 1, the user verifies a list of viewable channels and selects a desired channel for viewing. Thereafter, the channel list is either not displayed, or is displayed only in response to a specific menu selection. In response to channel selection, contents of a currently selected channel are displayed. Thus, the user performs channel switching based on the channel list. That is, the user selects the desired channel by scanning the channel list, using direction keys (e.g., up-down arrow keys), or by inputting a channel number directly.
Since the channel list is automatically generated based on the ensemble, and due to characteristics of the terrestrial DMB, television broadcasting channels, radio broadcasting channels, and data channels are mixed together. Therefore, the user may become frustrated or confused by the mixed channel lists, especially due to the length of time required for scanning through all channels in the channel list.